Thursday, July 31, 2014

New DVD Release

Töte Django
(Dango Kill)
(1967)
 
Country: Germany
Label: Media Target
Director: Giulio Questi
Starring: Tomas Milian, Roberto Camardiel, Ray Lovelock
Format: Blu-ray, Limited Edition, Widescreen
Language: German Dolby Digital 1.0 Mono), English Dolby Digital 1.0 Mono, Italian Dolby Digital 1.0 Mono
Subtitles: German, English
Aspect ratio: 16:9 - 2.35:1 
Running time: 116 minutes
ASIN: B00KGRTXZ0
Available July 31, 2014

ULZANA

Ulzana – German title
Ulzana, der unbesiegte Häuptling – German title
Der letzte Kampf der Apachen – Ulzana – German title
Ulzana - Schicksal und Hoffnung – German title
Ulzana - Im Reservat des Todes – German title
Ulzana – Hungarian title
Ulzana, capetenia apasilor – Polish title
Ulzana, wódz Apaczów – Polish title
Ulzana, Capetenia Apasilor – Romanian title
Ульзана – Russian title
Ulzana – Voda Apaca – Turkish title
Ulzana - Voda Apasa – Yugoslavian title
Ulzana – English title
 
A 1973 East German, Romanian, Russian co-production [DEFA (Berlin), Filmstudio Bucuresti(Bucharest), Mosfilm (Moscow)]
Producer: Dorothea Hildebrandt
Director: Gottfried Kolditz
Story: Gottfried Kolditz, Gojko Mitic
Screenplay: Gottfried Kolditz, Gojko Mitic
Cinematography: Hekmu Bergmann [color, Totalvision]
Music: Karl-Ernst Sasse
Running time: 95 minutes
 
Cast:
Ulzana – Gojko Mitic
Leona – Renate Blume
Captain Burton – Rolf Hoppe
Nana – Colea Rautu (Nikolai Rutkovski)
General Crook – Amza Pellea
Bob Tribollet – Fred Delmare (Werner Vorndran)
Mayor Aldrington – Alfred Struwe
Hackii – Dorel Iacobescu
Colonel – Dinu Gherasim
Buuly – Dan Sandulescu
Wilson – Hannjo Hasse
Mexican Doctor – Werner Dissel
Sergeant Winter – Fritz Mohr
John Richard Wardley – Paul Berndt
Ball – Klaus Gehrke
Cayrol – Holger Eckert
Howard – Walter Wickenhauser
Tael – Eugen Albert
Sergeant Hall – Stefan Alexandrescu
Mexican captain – Virgil Andriescu
2nd Lieutenant – Miahi Balas
David – Siegfried Bartschat
1st Lieutenant – Mircea Breazu
Pony Express rider – Jimmy Constantinuescu
3rd Lieutenant – Dan Dobre
Howard – Gerd Ehlers (Gerd Szczerbicki)
4th Lieutenant – Stefan Farkas
Soldier – B. Gawlitzki (Boris Gawlitzki)
Apache - Joe Schorn (Joseph-Petar Schorn),
Reporter for the Tucson Evening Star – Gerhard Rachold
Young lieutenant at Ft. Craig – Hans-Uwe Wardeck
Post doctor – Wilfried Zander (Vladimir Zshviarashvili)
With: Victor-Christian Keune, Harald Moszdorf, Ingrid Neumann-Eschrich, Manfred Otto, Wassili Rubzow, Maria Sierakowski-Rhinow, Hasso Wardeck, Gerd Funk (Gerhard Funk)
 

Ulzana is chief of the Mimbrero Apache tribe, who have peacefully settled in Arizona, where they manage to make such a good harvest of fruit they begin to start selling it in the local towns. This is a thorn in the side of the local merchants who quickly find a corrupt army officer named Burton to start some trouble which causes the Native Americans to leave their reservation. Burton keeps an eye on Ulzana's beautiful Mexican wife Leona to make things more complicated.
 
YouTube film clip: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TC7L47XeIwA

Happy 70th Birthday Geraldine Chaplin

Geraldine Chaplin was born on July 31, 1944 in Santa Monica, California. The eldest daughter from Charles Chaplin's marriage to Oona O'Neill, the daughter of famed playwright Eugene O'Neill, she spent her first eight years in Hollywood, but then moved with her family to Switzerland when her father was persecuted by the U.S. government for his political beliefs. In her new home, Ms. Chaplin attended private schools and was trained in classical ballet at the Royal Ballet School in London with the English Royal Ballet. She made her film debut in the elder Chaplin's “Limelight” (1952) as a dancer. She also played a small role in her father's last film, “Countess From Hong Kong” (1964). She had her first major adult role in 1965 playing Omar Shariff's wife, Tonya, in “Doctor Zhivago” (1965). Much of the film was shot in Spain and it was there that Chaplin began a long romance with director Carlos Saura, who featured her in several films. She has subsequently worked with some of Europe's finest directors. She has also worked with American directors, most notably Robert Altman, who first utilized her in “Nashville” (1975) as the chatty, shallow BBC reporter Opal. In addition to her busy film career, Chaplin also appeared on-stage and in television miniseries such as ‘Gulliver's Travels’ (1996) and ‘The Odyssey’ (1997). Though she has often played leads, the diminutive, willowy, and offbeat beauty with the haunting blue eyes claims she is more comfortable in character roles. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi
 
Chaplin appeared in two Euro-westerns: The TV film “Carlos” (1971) as Lisa and “Yankee Dudler” (1973) as Kate Elder.
 
Today we celebrate Geraldine Chaplin’s 70th birthday.

Happy 85th Birthday Don Murray

Donald Patrick Murray was born on July 31, 1929 in Hollywood, California. Don was the only child of Dennis Aloisius, a Broadway dance director and stage manager, and Ethel Murray, a former Ziegfeld performer. He attended East Rockaway High School in East Rockaway, New York where he played football and was on the track team. Upon graduation from high school, he went on to study at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts. After graduating, he soon made his Broadway debut in the 1951 play “The Rose Tattoo”, as Jake Hunter. After taking a three-year break from acting, in order to assist orphans and war casualties during the Korean War, he returned to America in 1954 and resumed acting, by appearing alongside Mary Martin in the 1955 stage version of “The Skin of Our Teeth”. Upon seeing his performance in the play, director Joshua Logan decided to cast him in 20th Century Fox's film version of “Bus Stop”. His performance as the innocent cowboy who is determined to get Cherie was well received, and he was nominated for a BAFTA for Most Promising Newcomer and for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor.
 
In 1957, he starred as reserved, married bookkeeper Charlie Sampson in “The Bachelor Party”. The same year he starred in one of his most successful roles in the drama “A Hatful of Rain”. He portrayed Johnny Pope, a morphine addicted Korean War veteran. The film was one of the first to show the effects of drug abuse on the addicted and those around him. Don appeared in one Euro-western: “Kid Rodelo” (1965) with Janet Leigh and Broderick Crawford.
 
He starred as a blackmailed United States senator in “Advise & Consent” (1961), a film version of a Pulitzer Prize-winning novel by Allen Drury. He also co-starred with Steve McQueen in the film “Baby the Rain Must Fall” (1965) and played the ape-hating Governor Breck in “Conquest of the Planet of the Apes” (1972).
 
In addition to acting, Murray directed a film based on the book “The Cross and the Switchblade” (1970) starring Pat Boone and Erik Estrada.
 
Murray starred with Otis Young in the ground breaking ABC western television series “The Outcasts” (1968–69) featuring an interracial bounty hunter team in the post-Civil War West.
 
In 1979, he starred as Sid Fairgate on the long-running prime-time soap opera ‘Knots Landing’. He also scripted two episodes of the program in 1980. However, in 1981 Murray decided to leave the series after two seasons to concentrate on other projects, although some sources say he left over a salary dispute. Although he effectively distanced himself from the series after that, Murray later contributed an interview segment for ‘Knots Landing: Together Again’, a non-fiction reunion special made in 2005.
 
Don is scheduled to saddle up again in 2015’s western film “The Hard Ride” directed by Thadd Turner.
 
Today we celebrate Don Murray’s 85th birthday.

Wednesday, July 30, 2014

RIP Robert Halmi Sr.

Prolific TV Producer Robert Halmi Sr. Dies at 90. Robert Halmi Sr., the Hungarian-born producer who battled the Nazi and Soviet occupations in his youth before becoming a top magazine photographer and telepic mogul, died Wednesday of a brain aneurysm at his home in New York City. He was 90. With his son, Robert Halmi Jr., Halmi produced more than 200 TV productions, including hit 1990s miniseries including “Gulliver’s Travels,” “The Odyssey,” “Arabian Nights”, “Dinotopia”, westerns “King of Texas”, “The Colt” and the Euro-SciFi-western “High Plains Invaders” in 2005.

Remembering Umberto D'Orsi

Umberto D’Orsi was born on July 30, 1929 in Trieste, Friuli Venezia Giulia, Italy. He graduated the university with a degree in law in 1953, but was already active in show business after at least three years of training as part of an amateur drama group and as well as an organizer of the university theater center. Vittorio Gassman offered him a part in his “Richard III” and from that moment his acting career took off.
 
He devoted time almost casually to the cinema and in 1962 saw his big chance by being discovered by Luciano Salce who directs him inLa cuccagna”; In the same year he also participates inIl processo di Verona” by Carlo Lizzani in which he plays his role with a great dramatic look of the hierarch fascist Luciano Gottardi.
 
D’Orsi was also a spokesman commercials where he gave birth to a famous caricature of Carousel, as the confusing the Belisario.
 
He was often seen, without a mustache, in many comedies with Franco and Ciccio, as well as an antagonist of Pippo Franco in the film, mostly famous for its curious title,Quel gran pezzo dell'Ubalda tutta nuda e tutta calda” (1972).
 
Umberto appeared in eight Euro-westerns from “Death Walks in Laredo (1966) as Bronson to “The Crazy Bunch” (1974) as the insane asylum director.
 
Umberto died on  August 31, 1976 at the age of just 47 years at the San Camillo Hospital in Rome, after a four-month hospitalization as a result of kidney disease. He was Married to actress Milly Ristori the great-granddaughter of the more famous Adelaide Ristori [1822-1906] and had recently returned to the theater in Goldoni Sior Todero Brontolon.
 
Today we remember Umberto D’Orsi on what would have been his 85th birthday.

Remembering Mario Bava

Mario Bava was born on July 30, 1914 in Sanremo, Liguria, Italy. His father, Eugenio Bava [1886-1966], was a cinematographer in the early days of the Italian film industry. Bava was trained as a painter, and when he eventually followed his father into film photography his artistic background led him to a strong belief in the importance of visual composition in filmmaking.
 
Other than a series of short films in the 1940s which he directed, Bava was a cinematographer until 1960. He developed a reputation as a special effects genius, and was able to use optical trickery to great success. Among the directors for whom Bava photographed films were Paolo Heusch, Riccardo Freda, Jacques Tourneur and Raoul Walsh. While working with Freda on “Lust of the Vampire” (1956), the director left the project after an argument with the producers and the film mostly unfinished. Bava stepped in and directed the majority of the movie, finishing it on schedule. This film, also known as "The Devil's Commandment", inspired a wave of gothic Italian horror films. After a similar incident occurred on Freda's “Caltiki, the Immortal Monster” (1959), and Bava's having been credited with "saving" Tourneur's “The Giant of Marathon” (1959), Galatea urged Bava to direct any film he wanted with their financing.
 
The film that emerged, “Black Sunday” (1960), is one his most well-known as well as one of his best. This widely influential movie also started the horror career of a beautiful but then unknown British actress named Barbara Steele. While Black Sunday is a black and white film, it was in the color milieu that the director excelled. The projects which followed began to develop stunning photography, making great use of lighting, set design, and camera positioning to compliment mise-en-scenes bathed in deep primaries. Through works such as “Hercules in the Haunted World” (1961), “The Whip and the Body” (1963), and “Planet of the Vampires” (1965), Bava's films took on the look of works of art. In the films “The Evil Eye” (1963) and “Blood and Black Lace” (1964), he created the style and substance of the giallo, a genre which would be perfected in the later films of Dario Argento.
 
Bava worked in many popular genres, including Viking films, peplum, Spaghetti westerns “The Road to Fort Alamo” (1964), “Savage Gringo” (1966) and “Roy Colt and Winchester Jack” (1970), action, and even softcore, but it is his horror films and giallo mystery films which stand out.
 
But after the commercial failure of his later films, as well as the unreleased works of “Rabid Dogs” (1974), Bava went into a decline and by 1975, retired from filmmaking all together. He was persuaded to come out of retirement at the request of his son, Lamberto, to direct “Shock”, as well as a made-for-Italian television movie. Mario Bava died from a sudden heart attack on April 27, 1980 at age 65. With his death, an era in Italian filmmaking had come to a close.
 
By Jeff Dove
 
Today we remember Mario Bava on what would have been his 100th birthday.

Tuesday, July 29, 2014

TH UGLY ONES

El precio de un hombre – Spanish title
The Bounty Killer – Italian title
La morte ti segue… ma non ha fretta – Italian title
Doders van het westen – Belgium title
Bounty Killer, O Pistoleiro Mercenário – Brazilian title
O Preço de um Homem – Brazilian title
Dusoerdraeberen – Danish title
Les tueurs de l’Ouest – French title
Ohne Dollar keinen Sarg – German title
… der keine Gnade kennt – German title
Särge ohne Leichen – German title
I teleftaia efodos ton dolofonon – Greek title
O epikirygmenos tou El Paso – Greek title
7 Fredløse Menn – Norwegian title
Vinganca ao amanhecer – Portuguese title
Sju Fredlosa man – Swedish title
The Day of the Guns – English title
The Price of a Man – English title
The Ugly Ones – U.S.A. title
 
A 1966 Spanish, Italian co-production [Tecisa Film (Madrid), Discobolo Film (Rome)]
Producers: José Gutiérrez Maesso, Liliana Biancini
Director: Eugenio Martin (Eugenio Marquez)
Story: “The Bounty Killer” by Marvin H. Albert
Screenplay: José Gutiérrez Maesso, Eugenio Martin (Eugenio Marquez), Don Prindle (James Prindle)
Cinematography: Enzo Barboni [Color by Deluxe]
Music: Stelvio Cipriani
Running time: 95 minutes
 
Cast:
José Gómez Faradin/Sanchez – Tomás Milian (Tomás Rodríguez)
Luke Chilson – Richard Wyler (Richard Stapley)
Anna Eden – Ella Karin (Alina Zalewska)
Gage Novak – Glenn Foster (Vincenzo Fiermonte)
Deserter – Hugo Blanco (Hugo Galiasso)
Ruth Harmon – Lola Gaos (Dolores González-Pola)
Miguel Cortinas – Mario Brega
Marty Hefner – Manuel Zarzo
Zacharias – Tito Garcia (Pablo González)
Antonio – Antonio Iranzo (Antonio Ecorijuela)
Doc – Fernando Sánchez Polack
Collins – Gene Collins
Gomez henchmen – Saturno Cerra
Juan Valdez – José Canalejas
Dave – Enrique Navarro
Bill – Gonzalo Esquiroz (Gonzalo de Esquiroz)
Stage station attendant – Ricardo Palacios (Ricardo Diez)
Max – Antonio Cintado
Federal Agent – Lusi Barboo
Wade Dempsey – Frank Braña (Francisco Pérez)
Bank teller – Goyo Lebrero
With: Charo Bernejo, Augusto Pesarini, Rafael Vaquero, Dennis Kilbane
Stunts: Miguel Pedregosa
 

A young woman named Anna Eden, manages to help the bloodthirsty outlaw José Faradin escape while he is being taken to prison. On the trail of the bandit is Luke Chilson, a bounty hunter who comes to a remote group of houses where Anna lives. Her he is sure to meet José too. So it happens and with a ploy the "bounty hunter" gets the upper hand. With the intervention of Faradin’s henchmen and the help of the local population who are romantically linked to the bandit, the situation becomes reversed. Luke remains a prisoner of José and is brutally tortured. In the meantime, both José and his men clearly demonstrate their intentions: some people are killed for no reason and all the villagers are robbed of their modest possessions. At this point, Anna, who has had the opportunity to get to really know José, frees Luke, and finally helped by the locals, is able to eliminate the terrible band.
 
YouTube trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lbPS868F0SU

Happy 80th Birthday Bruno Scipioni

Bruno Scipioni was born on July 29, 1934 in Rome, Lazio, Italy. After graduating as an accountant he attended the Experimental Center of Cinematography. He began his film career with “Kapò” (1959) and he was most active during the 1960s, usually being cast as a character actor. During this time he appeared in eight Euro-westerns from “The Terrible Sheriff” in 1962 to “The Handsome, the Ugly and the Stupid” in 1967. He also appeared in such westerns as “Renegade Gunfighter” (1965) and “Ringo and His Golden Pistol” (1966).  He was also active on stage, television series, commercials and as voice actor. He is the father of voice actor Carlo Scipioni. He became well known for his portrayal of the bartender in the Italian Crodino commercials. He’s best remembered for his film work for his appearances in Michelangelo Antonioni’s film “The Red Desert” in 1964 and as Balthazar in Franco Zeffirelli’s “Romeo and Juliet” in 1968.
 
His last film appearance was in “Excellent Cadavers” in 1999 where he played an assembly judge.
 
Today we celebrate Bruno Scipioni’s 80th birthday.

Monday, July 28, 2014

RIP James Shigeta

James Shigeta, a star Asian-American actor of the early 1960s and 'Die Hard' Co-Star, died in Los Angeles, California at the age of 85. He starred “In Flower Drum Song” (1961). Born in Honolulu of Japanese ancestry on June 17, 1929, Shigeta moved to New York and studied at New York University, then joined the U.S. Marine Corps and fought during the Korean War. He starred in “Flower Drum Song” (1961) with Nancy Kwan. He played Joseph Yoshinobu Takagi in 1988’s “Die Hard” with Bruce Willis. Shigeta co-starred with Thomas Hunter and Nadir Moretti in his only Euro-western: “Death Walks in Laredo” (1966).

Who Are Those Gals? - Simone Blondell

 
Simonetta Vitelli was born in Rome, Lazio, Italy on June 16, 1950. Simone is the daughter of producer, director screenwriter Demofilo Fidani [1914-1994] and screenwriter, costume designer Maria Rosa Valenza Vitelli [1923-2007]. Being the daughter of a director she found work early in films beginning in 1967 in “Stranger Say Your Prayers”. Her beauty, especially her hypnotic eyes, caught the viewer’s attention and she was more than well received. Thankfully Fidani used her in almost every Euro-western he made and as Simone Blondell she ended up appearing in fourteen Euro-westerns including “One Damned Day at Dawn” (1970), “Django and Sartana are Coming… It’s the End” (1971), “A Man Called Django!” (1971) and “Savage Guns”. She appeared with such Fidani regulars as Hunt Powers, Jeff Cameron, Klaus Kinski, Anthony Steffen, Gordon Mitchell, Fabio Testi and Robert Woods. She retired from acting after 1974’s “Terror! Il castello delle donne maledette” but is scheduled to appear in the eagerly anticipated new Euro-western “The Resurrection of El Puro” scheduled to go before the cameras this fall. Simone continues to work behind the cameras as a set designer, costume designer. Still as beautiful, vivacious and charming as ever, it’s always hoped she revives her film career and we see much more of her on the screen in the coming years.
 
BLONDELL, Simone (aka Simone Blondel, Mariangela Matania) (Simonetta Vitelli) [6/16/1950 Rome, Lazio, Italy -     ] - film editor, costume designer, daughter of producer, director, screenwriter Demofilo Fidani [1914-1994], producer, director, screenwriter, actress Maria Rosa Vitelli Valenza [1923-2007], married to producer Paolo Lucidi [1951-    ] (19??-19??), mother of Lorenzo Luccidi[1981-    ], actress Francesca Lucidi [1983-    ].
Pray to God and Dig Your Grave – 1967 (Don Enrique’s maid)
Stranger Say Your Prayers – 1967 (Sullivan daughter)
And Now Make Your Peace with God - 1968 (Trudy Sullivan)
Shadow of Sartana… Shadow of Your Death – 1968 (Trudy)
4 Came to Kill Sartana - 1969 (Susy Prescott)
Stranger Say Your Prayers! - 1969 
Zorro the Lawman - 1972 (Perla Dominguez)
Dead Men Don’t Make Shadows - 1970 (Maya)
One Damned Day at Dawn... Django Meets Sartana - 1970 (Widow Sturges)
Django and Sartana are Coming... It’s the End - 1971 (Anne/Jessica Cobb/Brewster)
Django Story - 1971
A Man Called Django! - 1971 (Inez)
Savage Guns - 1971 (Fanny)
Showdown for a Badmen - 1971 (Monica Benson/Irene)
Everything for a Friend - 1972 (Pearl)
Memories from the Near West – 2008 [herself]
The Resurrection of El Puro – 2013 [in production]
Stracult – 2014 [herself]

Happy 55th Birthday Manuel Hernandez

Manuel Rafael Hernández Montoya was born on July 28, 1959 in Los Albaricoques, Nijar, Andalusia, Spain. Manuel grew up in Los Albaricoques and was a small boy when Sergio Leone and his crew came to town to film “Fistful of Dollars” and “For a Few Dollars More”. His mother, aunt and cousin were used as extras in the films. In “For a Few Dollars More” the town had recently held a funeral for one of the citizens and the women were still shrouded in black dress which was perfect for Sergio as inhabitants of his fictional Agua Caliente where the townspeople didn’t like visitors. Manuel himself would later play a young soldier in “El Condor” (1969).
 
A former teacher, today he owns the Hostal Rural Alba and Casa Rural La Minilla. Manuel has been instrumental in preserving the history of the village. Street names have been named after Leone, Van Cleef and Eastwood. He was instrumental in reconstructing the deteriorated ring where the final showdown between Colonel Mortime and El Indio took place. His Hostal contains many murals and photos from the days when films were made in the town. He’s even created his own brand of wine with Clint Eastwood pictured on the label. In 2013 he was a prominent figure in the TV episode  ‘Este es mi pueblo: El Cortijo de El Fraile y Los Albaricoques’ dressed as Lee Van Cleef and proudly showing off the town.
 
As the head of the Nijar Cultural Development Committee put together an homage for the 25th anniversary of Sergio Leone’s death and the town had a one day celebration with a staging of scenes from “For a Few Dollars More” and a showing of the film. 
 
Today we celebrate the 55th birthday, one of the men who is keeping the dream alive Manuel R. Hernández.

Sunday, July 27, 2014

Der Überfall in der Sierra-Nevada-Schlucht

Der Überfall in der Sierra-Nevada-Schlucht – German title
 
A 1920 German production [International Film-Industrie GmbH (Heidelberg)]
Producer: ?
Director: Hermann Basler
Story: Hermann Basler
Screenplay: Hermann Basler
Cinematography: ? [black & white]
Running time: 1210 meters
 
Cast:
Hermann Basler
 
Story is unknown.

Remembering Pastor Serrador

Heriberto Pastor Serrador was born on July 27, 1919 in Camagüey, Cuba. Grandson of actor Esteban Serrador [1903-1978] and Josefina Marí, nephew of Pepita Serrador [1913-1964] and therefore cousin of director Narciso Ibáñez Serrador [1935- ], Pastor spent his childhood in Argentina, where he began his acting career on the radio. He debuted on stage in 1935 and in 1938 married the Argentina actress Amalia Britos.
 
The pressures to which he was subjected by his activities as secretary of the Argentina Actors Association, pushed him to move to Spain, where he remarried to actress Luisa Sala [1923-1986] and took up residence in 1952.
 
He then returned to a prolific acting career in both theater and film and television. On the big screen starred in titles like “Al fin solos” (1955) directed by José María Elorrieta,Manolo, guardia urbano” (1956) by Rafael J. Salvia , “The violetera” (1958) by Luis César Amadori and “Asignatura aprobada” (1987), by José Luis Garci.  Serrador appeared in three early Spanish Euro-western: “Apache Fury” (1963), “Massacre at Fort Grant” (1964) and “The Last of the Mohicans” (1965).
 
He also enjoyed great success in the Spanish stages with works in El Escorial.
 
He was present on Spanish television from its earliest days in Spain, he joined the cast of one of the first Spanish TV series and ‘Palma y Don Jaime’ (1959-1960). In subsequent years he would play dozens of characters on shows like Studio 1, Novela,  ‘Primera fila’, ‘La comedia musical española’ (1985) and the series ‘Platos Rotos’ (1986), with his wife, which would be the last work before his sudden death.
 
After being widowed in 1986, he married in 1987 to Maria Teresa Alonso and I had a son. Pastor died in Madrid, Spain on December 16, 2006.
 
Today we remember Pastor Serrador on what would have been his 95th birthday

Saturday, July 26, 2014

2014 National Day of the Cowboy


Spaghetti Western Locations

Continuing our search for locations for “Texas Adios” (The Avenger). Burt tells Delgado he’s come to Mexico to bring him back to Texas to stand trial for the murder of his father. Cisco says he won’t be returning and Burt will be going back alone. He asks where Jim is and when Burt asks him why, he tells him because Jim is his son. Again Burt has a flasback and remembers Cisco and his men riding off as his mother stumbles out of the front door in a disheveled condition. Burt leaves the room saying nothing and returns to the outside where Jim is waiting for him. They are both told to follow and are taken to their rooms.
 
 
The interiors of the Delgado house were filmed on a Cinecitta sound stage in Rome.
 

For a more detailed view of this site and other Spaghetti Western locations please visit my friend Yoshi Yasuda’s location site: http://y-yasuda.net/film-location.htm

Friday, July 25, 2014

Guess Who I Am

 
I’m a British actress born in London in 1940.
 
I was a Paris dancer in the Blue Belles.
 
I was the companion of a famous Italian composer and am the mother of his son.
 
Guess who I am.
 
No one guessed this week's photo of Gloria Paul.
 
 

New DVD Release

Sie nannten ihn Gringo
(A Man Called Gringo)
(1965)
 
Starring: Götz George, Helmut Schmid
Director: Roy Rowland
 
Country: Germany
Label: Filmjuwelen
Format: PAL, widescreen
Aspect ratio: 2.35:1 – 16:9
Audio: German Dolby Digital
Subtitles: None
Running time: 87 minutes
Bonus features: German trailer
ASIN: B00GCWDHFK
Release date: July 25, 2014

The Poker Game

The Poker Game – English title
 
A 2014 Swedish production [Spectaculr Films (Sweden)]
Producer: Kjell Nilsen
Director: Bo Ostvall
Story: Bo Ostvall
Screenplay: Bo Ostvall
Cinematography: [color]
Music: Geir Arne Johansen
Running time:
 
Cast:
Luke – Rasmus Holmberg
Bill – Buck Callahand
John – Morten Gellein Naess
Stuart – Tommy Johansson
Doc James – Henrik Boothill Bob Brandt
Ernie – Kjell Terje Gundersen
Sheriff/drunk – Lars Erik Gaasvaer
Maggie – Sigfrid Mustaparta Paulsen
Filippo – Goran Svensson
Dingo – Richard Richardsen
Wells Fargo Agent – Kjell Nilsen
Laura - Beate Gellein Naess
Stunt coordinator: Tommy Johansson
Stunts: Rasmus Holmberg
 

A quiet afternoon in Rock River City goes awry when a poker game is interrupted by the appearance of Filippo the wily Mexican.

YouTube film: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HVjXi5VOcC8

Happy 45th Birthday Eric Judor

Eric Judor was born on July 25, 1969 in Paris, France. Judor is internationally known for his comedy duo Éric and Ramzy with Ramzy Bédia [1972- ]. Judor's father was from Guadeloupe and his mother from Austria. After being a tour guide in the United States for two years and then in Canada, he worked as a computer programmer at Bouygues.
 
He meets his alter ego comic Ramzy Bedia in 1994 and two formed a comedy team and appeared on French TV M6 in their own series.
 
The two comedians starred in one Euro-western “The Daltons” in 2004
 
Eric created the Plane series in 2011. Season 2 aired on Canal + from Monday, September 16, 2013.
 
Today we celebrate Eric Judor’s 45th birthday.

Remembering Lynne Frederick

Lynne Maria Frederick was born on July 25, 1954 in Hillingdon, England. Frederick was the daughter of Andrew and Iris (Sullivan) Frederick. Her mother became a casting director for Thames Television. Lynne's parents separated when she was two, and she was brought up by her mother and her grandmother, Cecilia, at Market Harborough, Leicestershire, England.
 
She wanted to become a teacher of mathematics and physics, but she abandoned her academic pursuits for the stage, and made her film debut as Mary Custance in “No Blade of Grass” (1970) when she was just 16 years old. She then appeared a year later in the 1971 biographical film “Nicholas and Alexandra”, in which she played Grand Duchess Tatiana Nikolaevna of Russia, second eldest daughter of Tsar Nicholas II. However her best-known appearance came shortly afterwards when she played another historical character, Catherine Howard in “Henry VIII and His Six Wives” in 1972. Frederick would go on to pursue a successful career in films throughout the 1970s including two Euro-westerns: “Red Coat” (1974) as Elizabeth Tilries and Lucio Fulci’s “Four of the Apocalypse” (1975) as Emanuela ‘Bunny’ O’Neill.
 
She’s also remembered as the wife of actor Peter Sellers [1925-1980] from 1977 to 1980 and to producer David Frost [1939-2013] (1981-1982).
 
Lynne died of alcoholism on April 27, 1994 in Los Angeles, California.
 
Today we remember Lynn Frederick on what would have been her 60th birthday.

Remembering Edward Fleming

Edward Fleming was born Flemming Møller on July 25, 1924 in Farum, Copenhagen, Denmark. Fleming was a Danish actor and film director. His acting career started in the theater at the New Theatre in Summer in Tyrol, and he also enjoyed dancing exposures in Paris.
 
He later became known as a film director, where he directed such films asOg så er der bal bagefter” (1970), “Den korte sommer” (1976), “Rend mig i traditionerne” (1979), “De uanstændige” (1983), “Den kroniske uskyld” (1985) and “Sidste akt” (1987).
 
On television, he starred in the series ‘En by i provinsen’.
 
Edward appeared in only on Euro-western as Stort brod in “Gold for the Tough Guys of the Prairie” (1971).
 
Fleming died in Denmark on June 12, 1992.
 
Today we remember Edward Fleming on what would have been his 90th birthday.

Remembering Woody Strode

Woodrow Wilson Woolvine Strode was born on July 25, 1914 in Los Angeles, California. Strode attended Jefferson High School in East Los Angeles and college at UCLA. Strode posed for a nude portrait, part of Hubert Stowitts's acclaimed exhibition of athletic portraits shown at the 1936 Berlin Olympics.
 
Strode, Kenny Washington and Jackie Robinson starred on the 1939 UCLA Bruins football team, in which they made up three of the four backfield players. Along with Ray Bartlett, there were four African-Americans playing for the Bruins, when only a few dozen at all played on other college football teams. They played eventual conference and national champion USC to a 0–0 tie with the 1940 Rose Bowl on the line.
 
Strode and fellow UCLA alumnus Kenny Washington were two of the first African-Americans to play in major college programs and later the modern National Football League, playing for the Los Angeles Rams in 1946. He played for two seasons with the Calgary Stampeders in Canada, where he was a member of Calgary's 1948 Grey Cup Championship team before retiring due to injury in 1949.
 
In 1941, Strode had dabbled for several months in professional wrestling.Following the end of his football career in 1949, he returned to wrestling part-time between acting jobs until 1962. In 1952, Strode wrestled almost every week from August 12, 1952 to December 10, 1952 in different cities in California. He was billed as the Pacific Coast Heavyweight Wrestling Champion and the Pacific Coast Negro Heavyweight Wrestling Champion in 1962. He later teamed up with both Bobo Brazil and Bearcat Wright.
 
As an actor, the 6 ft 4 in Strode was noted for film roles that contrasted with the stereotypes of the time. He is probably best remembered for his brief Golden Globe-nominated role in “Spartacus” (1960) as the Ethiopian gladiator Draba, in which he fights Kirk Douglas to the death. Also remembered are his appearances in the John Ford westerns “Sergeant Rutledge” (1960) and “The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance” (1962). Woody continued his film career in the late 1960s with appearances in ten Euro-westerns including “Once Upon a Time in the West”, “Shalako” (both 1968), “Boot Hill” and “The Unholy Four” (both 1969), “Theb Deserter” (1971) and “Keoma” (1975).
 
Woody died of lung cancer on December 31, 1994 in Glendale, California.
 
Today we remember Woody Strode on what would have been his 100th birthday.

Thursday, July 24, 2014

Brett Halsey Book Signing

On Saturday August 2, 2014 at 2:00p.m. Dark Delicacies will hold a signing for actor/author Brett Halsey and actress/producer Arianne Ulmer Cipes.
 
Brett will be signing his first novel A Grave Misunderstanding. He is better known as an actor having been in such genre fare as Return of the Fly, Revenge of the Creature, The Atomic Submarine, and Twice-Told Tales.
 
Arianne is the daughter of writer/director Edgar G. Ulmer and will be signing copies of the new book about her father Edgar G. Ulmer: A Filmmaker at the Margins
 
Dark Delicacies: 3512 W. Magnolia, Burbank, CA 91505
Website www.darkdel.com

"Cinecittà World" opens today.

Cinecitta World, the first theme park dedicated to cinema, will raise the curtain for spectators on 24th of July: it is designed by Dante Ferretti and the music is by Ennio Morricone.
 
The park will have the longest season in Europe: it is open 260 days a year, from 10am to 11pm, with a full ticket of entrance which gives access to all the attractions and all shows daily, 20 attractions, 8 film sets, 4 theaters, many themed restaurants.
The main entrance is a faithful reproduction of the entry of Fellini’s and Rossellini’s studios. Going into the huge mouth of the monstrous god Moloch in the film ‘Cabiria’ you will enter directly into the set of ‘Gangs of New York’ (but the original sets remain on Tuscolana). On the left here is the first water rollercoaster ‘Water Ride’. A little farther the spectacular rollercoaster Altair, one of the stars of the park with a track consisting of 10 inversions at 360 degrees with the evolutions ‘cobra roll’ and ‘corkscrew’. And then, at the back, the western village inspired by Sergio Leone’s movies, with live soundtrack music by Ennio Morricone and actors dressed as gunslingers. To the right the free-fall tower Erawan, which is 60 meters high. All around dozens of other attractions, theaters, movie sets and games for children and adults.
 
“Cinecittà contains world-class attractions. But what we see today is only a part of the overall project. Next year we will open an additional 75 acres of parkland dedicated to sports, nature and ecology,” said the president of “Cinecittà Spa Parks”, Emanuel Gout. “The beautiful Roman countryside will be preserved and respected.”
 
Visit Cinecittà World and enjoy this funny experience!
 
- Ennio `s Creek - City of the Frontier
 
You are in a border village, the railroad has not yet arrived and the only law is the sound of guns. The beautiful saloon attracts many strangers passing by. The inevitable argument occurs: someone turns over the table after losing a game of poker. The sheriff rushes in, but his opponents are many. Too many against one. Unless you arrive in the village at the right time and join to bring a peaceful end of the story. You will be accompanied by the amazing soundtrack music of Ennio Morricone.
 
GAMES:
 
Four Aces Hall, The game room in the West Village is waiting for you to prove your skills with every type of themed game. Are you smart enough?
 
E.g. Mining Inc., Have you ever experienced the excitement of the miners of the border? Arm yourself with patience and start to scour the mine for the largest nugget which could be yours.
 
Heardly Bros gun shop, Experience the thrill of a real cowboy: it shows that you can become the fastest gun in the West
 
Far West Festival, Your skill is put to the test by these games of skill, but the prize is truly the most coveted booty!
 
SHOWS:
 
Wild West: The fearsome Heardly Brothers Joe and Santa Ana were spotted in the city. No one can stop them, and the sheriff is left alone. The village needs a new hero wearing a gunbelt, now is your chance!
 
Can Can: Have you ever wondered what happens when a bit 'dizzy diva, performs on stage. Come to find out Noon Saloon in the Fire.
 
The Duel: What would a Western village without a good battle? Nothing. But with careless actors careless anything can happen and pretty much everything does.
 
An ace up its sleeve: John, the cheater is back in Ennio's Creek and is ready to show what he can do with a simple deck of cards. How many aces will he have up his sleeve?